House

Parent Place or Precinct

27310 Park Street Heritage Area

Statement of Significance

The place has cultural heritage significance:
• As a good representative example of the many 4-5 room brick homes which were built in Subiaco during the early twentieth century to meet the needs and aspirations of middle-class residents such as public servants, senior office workers, small business owners, skilled tradesmen and single/widowed women of private means.
• As a good representative example of the application of materials and detailing which were derived from the Federation Queen Anne style, but which were applied in a more restrained manner that suited the budgets and expectations of the middle classes in Subiaco during the early twentieth century.
• For its contribution to a largely intact group of early twentieth century houses in the portion of Park Street from Olive Street to Townshend Road.
For information on the significance of the Park Street Heritage Area refer to the Local Planning Policy for the Heritage Area.

Physical Description

Architectural style
Typical of many well built 2-3 bedroom suburban houses of the early twentieth century, 105 Park Street incorporated elements of the Federation Queen Anne style. It was designed to a scale and form generally considered suitable for occupiers such as small business owners, office workers, senior retail employees and skilled tradesmen.
Plan form at the street frontage
• Asymmetrical façade, featuring a projecting wing on the eastern side, and a verandah across the remainder of the frontage.
Roof form and materials
• Hipped-gabled roof clad with corrugated metal sheeting.
• Short east-west ridgeline, flanked by louvered gablets.
• Prominent verge gable with a roughcast rendered face set with vertical timber battens to the lower portion. Based on the surviving detailing, the upper part of the gable may have originally had a fretwork screen, similar to 101 Park Street.
• Convex, roughcast rendered cornice under the gable.
• Lacework brackets supporting the projecting outer ends of the gable (probably originally timber).
• Two tuck-pointed brick chimneys with rendered caps and rendered plinths.
• Bull-nosed verandah roof.
Wall materials and finishes to the main facade
• Tuck-pointed brick walls.
• Two rendered stringcourses, one at door head height and the other at window sill height.
Other detailing to main facade
• Raked window hood to the projecting wing, finished with vertical balusters to the sides and pointed timber dentils to the horizontal framing. The extant detailing suggests that this may have originally matched the more decorative detailing of the window hood to 101 Park Street.
• Triple casement window to the face of the projecting wing, set over a projecting moulded window sill with a decorative under-sill panel.
• Main entrance door located adjacent to the projecting wing. This has traditional moulded architraves, a single sidelight, highlight and stained glass panels.
• Single double-hung windows under the verandah, set over a projecting moulded window sill with a decorative under-sill panel.
• Full height arched niche to the face of the parapet at the western end of the verandah.
• Turned timber verandah posts, with a simple frieze of square balustrettes.
Streetscape setting
• House set back approximately 2.8m from the Park Street frontage.
• Lot width approximately 10.1m.
• House built up to a parapet wall along the western side; small side setback of approximately 600mm from the eastern boundary.
• Front yard enclosed by scalloped timber picket fence.

History

Subiaco's population increased significantly in the 1890s due to an economic depression in the eastern states and the discovery of gold in Western Australia. During the 1890s property developers bought large landholdings for subdivision in the Perth metropolitan area. The original subdivisions in Subiaco were generally simple grid pattern developments with small lots suitable for occupancy by working families. However, the more elevated parts of the suburb, particularly towards Kings Park, also attracted business and professional men and some lots were later amalgamated to accommodate their larger homes and gardens. Mixed development occurred and within the Park Street Heritage Area this ranged from narrow, single storey terrace housing through to a large 2-storey house set in spacious grounds. The readily available evidence indicates that the number of houses within this area increased from around 24 in 1901 to 72 in 1906; 86 in 1910; 91 in 1915, 94 in 1920 and 13 by 1925. Development then stabilised, with 106 houses and 1 block of flats identified in 1949.
Perth Suburban Lot 220 was subdivided as Deposited Plan 1552 in 1896 and advertised as the “Parkerville Estate”. This comprised 38 lots with frontages along the eastern side of Townshend Road (between Barker and Bagot Roads), part of the southern side of Barker Road, part of Salisbury Avenue (renamed as part of Park Street in 1901) and part of the northern side of Bagot Road.
The readily available evidence suggests that the near identical houses at 101 and 105 Park Street were built by Frederick Sedgley in 1907. Sedgley was a prolific local builder and, in addition to the development of numerous houses, also undertook the construction of the Subiaco Council Chambers in 1909 and the Subiaco Clock Tower in 1923.
103 Park Street appears to have been built first and advertised for sale in September 1907, while 105 Park Street was advertised for sale in January 1908:
SUBIACO.-New 5-roomed Brick Villa, 105 Park-st. (Perth end), perfectly finished, and splendid terms, price £500. F. Sedgley.
In the Subiaco Rate Books of 1908-1909 the owner was identified as S Simmonds and the occupant as S Wills. It is quite possible that the owner at that time was Simeon Simmonds, who was living at 100 Park Street in c.1905-1913.
A review of the Post Office Directories at 5-yearly intervals (together with reference to contemporary Electoral Rolls) indicates that some of the primary residents of #105 included:
 1910: Thomas O’Reilly (O’Reilly & Jervis)
The Rate Books of 1912-1913 recorded a new owner (name not clearly legible)
 1915: Nathaniel W Cooke
 1920: Mrs H E Cutridge
 1925: John Curtin (labourer)
 1930: Mrs G M Neely
In the Rates Book of 1929-1930 the owner was identified as ‘Jenkins’
 1935 & 1940:William Percival Kyrwood (driver)
 1945 & 1949: Edgar Frank Archelaus Jenkins (carpenter)
The rapid turnover of residents through the first half of the 20th century suggests that the place was primarily used as a rental property.
A plan of the lot prepared in 1927 and reviewed in 1955 for the purpose of planning sewerage and water supply services shows that the extent of the original footprint of this house is largely consistent with the current form although there is a internal garden that is a contemporary feature where a verandah once existed. Aerial photographs from the mid 20th century demonstrate that the roof cladding was previously red corrugated iron. The current additions to the rear were undertaken in the late 1980s. The form and extent of the original residence is still apparent.
105 Park Street was adopted on the City of Subiaco Local Heritage Survey in 2003. It has been assessed as level 3 (contributes to the heritage of the City of Subiaco).

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity - High: The place continues to be used as a private residence.
Authenticity - High: The original external detailing of the building is largely intact and/or
sympathetically restored/extended, and the place has been well maintained.

Condition

Based on a streetscape inspection the building appears to be in excellent condition.

Uses

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.